Station or street indicator



(No Model.)

I. H. MILLER.

STATION OR STREET INDICATOR.

' Patented May 1'7, 1887..

7%??zesseain such construction, arrangement, and oom- NITED STATES PATnNr IOHABOD H. MILLER, OF QUINCY, ILLINOIS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No, 363,162, dated May 17, 1887.

Application filed October 5, 1886. Serial No. 215,341. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ICHABOD H. MILLER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Quincy, in the county of Adams and State of Illinois, have invented new and useful Improvements in Station or Street Indicators for Cars, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in street or station indicators for cars; and it consists, substantially,

binations of parts, as will hereinafter be more particularly described, and pointed outin the claims.

The objects of the invention are to provide simplified devices by which the driver or conductor of a street-railway or other car may consecutively indicate to the passengers in the car the several streets or stations that are passed by the car in its travel to and fro over the route which it passes; also, to provide an automatically-operating alarm or hell, by which, as the station-indicating devices are operated, the attention of the passengers will be directed thereto, thus constantly reminding them of the point for which they may be destined, further objects more fully appearing from the description hereinafter following.

Reference being had to the accompanying sheet of drawings, Figure l representsafront vertical elevation of the mechanism resorted to in the practice of my invention, a portion of the box or casing being broken away in order to more clearly indicate the interior d isposition or arrangement of parts. Fig. 2 is a side elevation to more clearly indicate the mechanism operated upon by the driver or conductor to movethe indicating devices. Fi 3 is a sectional elevation taken at right angles to Fig. 2, and Figs. 4 and 5 arefdetail views to represent more clearly the construction and arrangement of several of the parts.

Referring to the several parts by the letters marked thereon, A represents a suitable box or casing, designed to be placed or supported on the interior of the car at the drivers or conductors end, and is provided with suitable apertures or openings, to, through which the passengers may see the name or number of the street or station indicated by the endless belt operating within. This belt B is constituted of a numberot pieces or strips of metal joined together in the manner of a hinge, such strips being joined by pieces'of wire whose extremities extend beyond the sides thereof, for the purpose to be hereinafter described.

The belt B traverses a large or main drum, C, two lower or bottom rolls, 0 c, and an intermediate drum, d, the object of employing so many of these being to obtain increase in the length of the belt in a condensed amount of space. Passing through theintermediate drum, d, is a shaft, 0, to one end of which is secured a beveled pinion, c, which meshes with a corresponding pinion, a", carried'by the end of a shaft, f, having itsbearing in projections g g, secured to the boxing or casing A. On the opposite end of the shaftf is carried a crank, h, having a thumb screw or pin, i, so; cured thereto by a spring, j, whose tendency is to maintain the screw-pin in suitably-arranged openings in the bearing 9, the crank it being also provided with an opening for the passage of the pin, as shown iii-dotted lines in Fig. 2. The head of the thumb-pin is pro vided on its inner side with a projection, it, which, as the same is turned, moves against a similar projection, Z, having an inclined side, as shown, and which is formed on the crank h. By this construction it will be seen thatit is not necessary to draw the pin outwardly in order to remove it from the openings in the bearing for the purpose of turning the crank to move the belt, as by simply turning the thumb pin or bolt the projection thereon will move against the projection on the crank,and thus will the pin be forced outwardly.

The drum 0 is provided with a number of notches, m, while intermediate thereof a like number of pins or projections, a, are arranged, and it is evident that as the belt is operated the extended ends of the wires which connect the strips of which it is constituted will slip into said notches and act to maintain the belt against accidental displacement or movement and continue to indicate a station through the opening a until again operated upon to indicate the next succeeding station.

Secured to the inside of the box: or casingis a sprung wire, 0, which is connected to a similar wire, also secured to the inner side of the casing, and is provided with a clapper which works in a gong or hell, q, secured to the opposite side of the casing, as seen. this arrangement of devices, as the belt is operated to move, the extremity of the wire 0 will come in contact with the pins or projections on the drum, and in passing over or around them will operate the clapper to sound an alarm, thus calling the attention of the passengers in the car that another stree'tor station has been reached. 7

It isintended that the operating mechanism for the belt shall be on the outer side of the car within reach of the driver or conductor, and it will be seen that in passing the several streets or stations he can control the indicating devices without difficulty. In the upper part of the casing I have shown the arrangement of a single drum provided with a series of hinged strips having thereon the names of the stations, which arrangement may be resorted to in steam passengercars, and intended to be operated by the conductor or other operative of the train as the stations are reached. In this connection the alarm may or may not be used; and I desire to state that in Fig. 2 I have shown a circular arrangement of openings, which are the same as have been hereinbefore referred to to mean those into which the thumb-pin is intended to fit as either set of indicating devices are operated, and it will be understoodthat in referring to such openings heretofore their arrangement is such as indicated. at the top of said Fig. 2.

From the foregoing description it is thought the construction and operation of my invention will be thoroughly understood; and I desire to'state that while I have herein shown the severalparts to be of a specific form it is evident that very material changes could be resorted to without departing from the spirit 40 the same, the sprung wires 0 and 12, secured to the inner side of the casing, the gong q, and the belt B, constructed of a number of strips of metal held together by wires Whose extremitiesenter the notches of the drum 0, as set forth, and for the purposes described.

2. In a station-indicator constructed substantially as herein shown and set forth, the combination of the drum d, having shaft on which is carried beveled pinion c, theshaftf, bearing a corresponding pinion, the bearing therefor having circularly-arranged openings, the crank h, having an inclined projection, the thumb-pin, also having a projection and passing through an opening in the crank and entcring those of the bearing, and the spring j, all operating in the manner set forth and described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

IOHABOD H. MILLER.

Witnesses:

HENRY H. CHAPMAN, GEORGE H. NIoKoLs. 

